Southampton 3-0

Independent:

Southampton 0 Chelsea 3
Jose Mourinho makes light of Juan Mata frustration as Oscar inspires Chelsea
Mourinho's side powered past the Saints in ruthless display

By NICK SZCZEPANIK

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was accused of playing mind games in advance of this match by insisting that Manchester City were favourites to win the Premier League title, and he maintains that stance. But he showed on Wednesday that he has tactical as well as psychological weapons at his disposal after a double substitution that turned a potentially tricky encounter decisively in Chelsea’s favour and ensured that they did not lose ground on City or Arsenal.
Seven minutes into the second half, with Southampton giving as good as they were getting, Mourinho introduced Oscar and Willian in place of Juan Mata and André Schürrle. Mata, Chelsea’s player of the season for the past two campaigns, pounded the bench in obvious frustration, but Mourinho’s decision was vindicated in some style as Oscar created two goals – one for Willian – and scored the other himself.
“The plan worked,” Mourinho said. “Sometimes it doesn’t, sometimes it does. This match was difficult. You need to work a lot to play against Southampton. We started very well. Normally after five minutes we would have one, two-nil, but we didn’t and we had to defend some difficult moments. Willian and Oscar gave a different intensity and we finished the game in a comfortable way.”
Mourinho claimed he had not witnessed Mata’s reaction, and said that he wanted the Spain playmaker to stay at Stamford Bridge, although he also said that ‘my door is always open’ if players want to discuss their futures. “I think his frustration was that we had to win and when he came off, the team was losing two points. At the end everyone was happy in the dressing room so I have to believe that.”
The other negative was a yellow card for a dive by Oscar, which Mourinho admitted had been correctly shown by Martin Atkinson, the referee. “He deserved the card,” Mourinho said. “Normally he’s a very fair, clean player. Atkinson did very, very well. Hopefully now other referees follow and can kill this [diving] situation.”
On the plus side, Chelsea won on a ground where City settled for a draw last month, and they began strongly despite facing an icy monsoon, but Fernando Torres shot over with only Kelvin Davis to beat, and Davis tipped Ramires’ shot over the bar following the Brazilian’s ambitious dribble.
Not that Chelsea were having things their own way. Ashley Cole had to block an effort by Adam Lallana and intervene again as Jay Rodriguez lined up a shot. Cesar Azpilicueta had to stretch to deny Lallana, as did Gary Cahill as Jose Fonte shot from close in, helping Petr Cech equal Peter Bonetti’s Chelsea record of 208 clean sheets in all competitions.
After 53 minutes, Mourinho made his double substitution, and it seemed that it had paid off immediately when Eden Hazard’s sublime through pass put Oscar in on Davis. But the Brazilian dived as Davis challenged and was booked. “He was waiting for a contact that didn’t come,” Mourinho said.
Oscar, though, made up for that lapse on the hour, his deflected cross from the left looping over Davis and off the foot of the far upright. Torres’s reflexes were lightning-quick as he dived to head in the rebound, the first away league goal by a Chelsea forward since 8 December 2012.
After 71 minutes, Oscar rolled a perfect pass to fellow substitute Willian, who was in space 18 yards out and shot low past Davis’s left hand, and Oscar sealed the victory with eight minutes remaining, timing his run onto Hazard’s pass perfectly, staying onside and drilling the ball past Davis.
Southampton have now won only once in nine games. Manager Mauricio Pochettino said: “We’ve been playing and suffering against top sides. We’re a young team and we’re still learning. And it’s important that we keep believing.”

Southampton (4-3-3): K Davis 6; Chambers 6, Fonte 7, Lovren 6, Shaw 6; S Davis 6, Cork 6, Schneiderlin 6; Ramirez 7, Rodriguez 5, Lallana 7.
Substitutes: Clyne 7 (Shaw ht), Lambert (Cork 60), Ward-Prowse (S Davis 76)

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Cech 6; Azpilicueta 7, Cahill 7, Terry 6, Cole 6; Ramires 7, Mikel 8; Mata 6, Hazard 8, Schurrle 5; Torres 7.
Substitutes: Oscar 8 (Mata 53), Willian 7 (Schurrle 53), Essien (Hazard 85)

Referee: M Atkinson,
Man of the match: Hazard.
Match rating: 8/10

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Guardian:
Juan Mata's Chelsea future in question after substitution anger
James Riark
Perhaps these are the sort of afternoons that José Mourinho professed to miss so much during his absence from the Premier League. As the wind and rain swept in off the south coast it was Mourinho who stood tall amid the storm and masterminded his side to a fourth league victory in five with two decisive substitutions.
However, a convincing win ended with Mourinho fielding questions on Juan Mata's future at Chelsea. The Spaniard, whose withdrawal was met with despondency and an angry reaction when he reached the dugout, has been linked with a January transfer after falling down the pecking order and Mourinho did little to quell such talk by saying "the club's door is open".
It was Oscar, Mata's replacement, who brought Chelsea to life against a Southampton side who had threatened during periods. The Brazilian also caused controversy when he was booked for a dive after knocking the ball past Kelvin Davis but his impact overall arguably won Chelsea the match. Oscar scored and had a hand in the goals by Fernando Torres and Willian.
On Mata's reaction to being substituted, with the attacker hitting a seat in the dugout, Mourinho said: "Juan's reaction I didn't see. I think his frustration was because of the result, because we know we have to win. At the end of the game everybody including him was happy in the dressing room and everybody was celebrating the victory.
"I want to keep him, I don't want him to go. That's my wish but my door is open and the club's door is open too. When a player wants to speak with us we are there waiting for them."
Southampton enjoyed spells of dominance but were undone by a decisive double substitution. Oscar and Willian, introduced on 53 minutes, both scored after Torres had broken the deadlock but it was Oscar's dive that caused the greatest furore. He allowed his leg to drift into Davis's body as he tumbled to the turf with the score at 0-0.
Mourinho said: "Oscar is a clean player that was waiting for the goalkeeper to come and smash him because that normally happens in these situations. But the goalkeeper was not coming or he was coming and then he stopped. I think it is a fair yellow card for a clean player. We know that he is clean.
"His explanation to me I accept. Oscar found himself in a moment of contradiction, speaking about fractions of seconds, where he thinks contact, penalty, red card."
Despite the atrocious conditions both sides were accomplished on the ball. Chelsea dominated in the opening 20 minutes, Torres darting inside off the left flank to beat two men before firing over, yet Southampton's cohesive attack soon clicked into gear.
Having been on the pitch for only three minutes, Oscar was slipped through one on one by Eden Hazard and knocked the ball past Davis before tumbling to the ground. The Brazilian did, however, play an integral part in Torres's goal soon after. The substitute received the ball on the left and struck a deflected cross that looped over Davis and on to the foot of his left-hand post, rebounding to Torres who finished with his head.
It was 2-0 11 minutes later as Oscar cut inside and fed Willian on the edge of the box to shoot low into the bottom corner. Oscar put the seal on an emphatic second half in the closing stages by firing low past Davis following a looping pass from Hazard.
Mauricio Pochettino said: "In the first hour we were playing quite well. We were quite unlucky with the first goal. When Chelsea brought on Willian and Oscar that completely changed the match.

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Telegraph:
Southampton 0 Chelsea 3
Jeremy Wilson

It was a day when we saw the good and the bad of Oscar but perhaps also the genius of Jose Mourinho.
With 53 minutes of this match gone, the wild south coast weather had looked the most likely victor as both Chelsea andSouthampton toiled to limited effect in the lashing rain and wind.
Exit Juan Mata and Andre Schürrle. Enter Oscar and Willian and, less than half-an-hour later, Chelsea had swept to an emphatic 3-0 win after their most convincing passage of football this season.
Mourinho’s brave and controversial double substitution had proved inspired.
Willian scored what was probably the pick of Chelsea’s three goals but it was still Oscar who was the undoubted catalyst behind this win.
He had provided the assist for the first two goals before then applying a deft finishing touch for the third. He was also booked for an embarrassing attempt to win a penalty by clearly initiating contact with Southampton goalkeeper Kelvin Davis.
Having accused Luis Suárez of an “acrobatic swimming pool jump” against Chelsea on Sunday, Mourinho was left with little option but to condemn his own player on Wednesday.
“Oscar deserved the card,” said Mourinho. “Oscar is a clean player that is waiting for the goalkeeper to smash him because that is what normally happens in this situation.
"The goalkeeper was coming and he stopped before the contact so, in the end, instead of the goalkeeper trying to smash him, he is trying to touch the goalkeeper.
“I don’t like but his explanation to me I also accept. He says to me, ‘When I see the goalkeeper coming I think, penalty, red-card, goodbye’. Oscar found himself in a moment of contradiction. It’s a split second. When one of the top referees in this country has a good decision, hopefully people follow and kill this situation.”
Buoyed by the 2-1 win over Liverpool on Sunday, Chelsea and, especially Fernando Torres, had earlier begun the match with real purpose.
A series of good positions were spurned, however, in a frantic opening 15 minutes before the first-half settled and Southampton actually began to assume control.
Roy Hodgson, the watching England manager, had plenty to assess from both teams and, on a rare Premier League start, Ashley Cole displayed his quality to block Adam Lallana’s shot and then deny Jay Rodriguez.
Chelsea showed further resilience after Calum Chambers’ cross was partially cut out by Gary Cahill and then César Azpilicueta brilliantly blocked another Lallana effort.
The pattern changed decisively, though, early in the second half. Southampton were hardly helped by Luke Shaw being forced off at half-time but the turning point was Mourinho’s two changes.
Oscar may have begun inauspiciously with his shameless search for contact after Eden Hazard had put him one-on-one with Davis but, in the eyes of anyone connected with Chelsea, his redemption was total.
For the first goal, Oscar collected Willian’s pass and then had his cross deflected off Chambers and onto the post. Torres was waiting and headed Chelsea into the lead.
Remarkably, it was the first league goal that a Chelsea striker has scored away from Stamford Bridge since December 2012.
The influence of the substitutes was even more obvious 11 minutes later when Oscar squared a pass to Willian who, in the blink of an eye, shifted the ball to his right and then aimed a precise shot past Davis.
Oscar then latched onto a looping Hazard pass over the Southampton defence and demonstrated that he is actually far more effective staying on his feet by smashing an immaculate finish past Davis.
A match seemingly heading towards stalemate had been comprehensively salvaged both by the quality of Oscar and Willian but, moreover, the tactical acumen of Mourinho.
“The plan worked,” said Mourinho. “Sometimes it doesn’t, some it does.
"Oscar and Willian changed the game but I think they had good conditions to do that.
They come into the game for the last 35 minutes with the accumulation of fatigue. They gave intensity.”
Mourinho claimed again after the match that Chelsea are still not “candidates” to win the Premier League this season.
His friend, the Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino, openly disagreed. “They are firm contenders,” he said. Few at St Mary’s on Wednesday would dissent from that view.

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Times:

Starring role for Oscar after Juan Mata is taken in hand
Matt Hughes

Southampton 0 Chelsea 3

For much of the season, José Mourinho’s treatment of Juan Mata has been the source of considerable mystery, particularly to the player himself, but not yesterday. The Chelsea manager’s bold decision to remove Mata and André Schürrle after only 53 minutes of a hard-fought contest changed the game, transforming a slog through a wet and windy bog into a carefree stroll to victory.
 Mourinho has turned the double and occasionally triple substitution into an art form over the years, but even by his high standards, the introduction of Oscar and Willian was staggeringly effective. Having shown dissent to Mourinho by ignoring him on the touchline and slamming his seat as he took his place on the bench, Mata could have no complaints after watching Oscar’s dazzling contribution. In little more than 20 minutes, the Brazilian created goals for Fernando Torres and Willian, then scored the third himself, atoning for his booking after diving in spectacular fashion. Mourinho conceded that Martin Atkinson, the referee, was correct to produce a yellow card but insisted that Oscar is a clean player.
 As a result of Oscar’s superlative form, Mata may soon have a decision to make — either accepting his place on the bench with more grace or speaking to Mourinho to demand a transfer, to which the manager intimated that he would reluctantly listen.
 The Spain midfielder deserves some sympathy, as he was given only eight minutes in his preferred central position at the start of the second period, but he had been a peripheral presence on the right throughout a first half in which Chelsea struggled to assert themselves after a bright opening. Southampton had dominated in between Chelsea’s occasional counter-attacks, the visiting team requiring several last-ditch challenges from Ashley Cole and César Azpilicueta to stay on level terms as Adam Lallana took advantage of the space in front of their back four.
 For all Chelsea’s obvious need for a new striker, their lack of a world-class holding midfield player may be an even more damaging weakness, but not for the first time this season, Southampton failed to take their chances, much to the frustration of Mauricio Pochettino, their manager.
 Oscar ensured that such concerns could be postponed for another day, though, by creating space in which his team-mates flourished. Although he had only 37 minutes on the pitch, he produced a man-of-the-match performance to restore the natural order of things under Mourinho at Stamford Bridge.
 Oscar made an immediate impact, being deservedly booked for living up to his theatrical name and initiating contact with Kelvin Davis’s chest after being put through on goal by the similarly impressive Eden Hazard.
 However, his second contribution five minutes later was far more positive. After collecting the ball on the left, his cross was deflected on to the far post off Calum Chambers and rebounded to Torres, who headed into an empty net for his seventh goal of the season.
 Torres has turned more corners than a child trapped in a maze in recent years, at least according to his various managers, and he will hope that providing the first away league goal scored by a Chelsea striker in 13 months is the twist that finally liberates him.
 Torres had been bright from the outset in his ongoing quest for validation, creating three chances in the first 18 minutes, only to be let down by questionable decision-making, his poor execution shown up by Oscar’s incisiveness later in the game.
 The Brazilian’s scintillating cameo continued in the 71st minute with a square ball played to Willian, which he stroked beyond Davis into the bottom right corner of the net from the edge of the area. The goal that Oscar deserved came 11 minutes later when he applied a neat finish at the far post after an excellent ball from Hazard.
 The defeat for Southampton extended their poor run to one win in their past nine matches.
 Mourinho continues to insist that Chelsea are outsiders in the title race, but with Oscar and Hazard combining so effectively that a player of Mata’s quality may be jettisoned, few will believe him.

Ratings

Southampton (4-2-3-1): K Davis 6 — C Chambers 5, D Lovren 5, J Fonte 5, L Shaw 6 (sub: N Clyne, 46min 6) — J Cork 5 (sub: R Lambert, 60), M Schneiderlin 5 — G Ramírez 6, S Davis 5 (sub: J Ward-Prowse, 76), A Lallana 6 — J Rodriguez 5. Substitutes not used: P Gazzaniga, M Yoshida, J Hooiveld, S Gallagher. Booked: Lovren, Ramírez, Cork, Clyne.

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): P Cech 6 — C Azpilicueta 7, G Cahill 6, J Terry 6, A Cole 7 — Ramires 6, J O Mikel 6 — J Mata 5 (sub: Oscar, 53 8), E Hazard 7 (sub: M Essien, 85), A Schürrle 5 (sub: Willian, 53 7) — F Torres 6. Substitutes not used: M Schwarzer, D Ba, S Eto’o, T Kalas. Booked: Oscar.

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Mail:

Southampton 0 Chelsea 3: Oscar plays the villain and hero as Blues star is booked for blatant dive before turning on the style
By Neil Ashton

With one last look in the mirror, he slipped out of the dressing rooms and shimmied across the red carpet at the main entrance to St Mary’s. It had been an Oscar-winning performance.
The great shame is how all this came about, from Juan Mata’s tantrum when he was replaced by the Brazilian midfielder in the 53rd minute to the goals that changed the direction of the game.
But first things first: the swan dive, the ‘acrobatic swimming pool jump’ as Jose Mourinho referred to Luis Suarez when he felt he had gone down too easily last Sunday.
Let's call it cheating.
Credit to Chelsea’s manager because at least he had the decency to admit Oscar had been caught out good and proper. Truth be told, Mourinho had little alternative.
Oscar had been streaking clean through on goal when he flung himself to the ground as Southampton keeper Kelvin Davis came hurtling off his line in the 55th minute.
Quite why he elected to leave a trailing leg in the path of the right arm of Davis instead of tapping Chelsea in front is a question that only Oscar will know the answer to.
At this point - and it is rare that we ever reach these conclusions in English football - referee Martin Atkinson must take a bow.
It is highly unusual for an official to be man of the match, but boy does he merit it. Spotting Oscar’s intentions alone is worthy of praise and distinction.
Atkinson produced a yellow card and yet somehow it just didn’t feel like it was enough.
The next step for our game is surely a sin-bin because everyone has has had a bellyful of this behaviour now.
Referees are on red alert for scoundrels like Oscar in the Barclays Premier League and he can now be produced to the gallery as Exhibit A. He is guilty as charged.

It is a shame that this mercurial talent has been caught up in something like this, but he dipped his twinkle-toed boots in English football’s increasingly muddy waters.
This isn’t what the new Chelsea was supposed to be about, the re-birth of the club after Mourinho returned from spells at Inter Milan and Real Madrid.
If it is possible to make amends then at least Oscar went some way towards redemption by putting Southampton away with a mesmerising display.
He had replaced Mata, who showed his disgust by ignoring Mourinho as he walked off and then slamming a seat in the dug-out. So impetuous.
From then on, though, it was about Oscar. When the substitute’s tantalising shot beat Davis all ends up and cannoned off his left hand post, Torres was in position to nod Chelsea in front. After that Saints were done.
That was an hour into the game and 11 minutes later Chelsea stretched their lead when Willian left Southampton’s defence flat-footed on the edge of the area. Again, Oscar was the provider.
He got his goal eight minutes from time, a strike that his performance merited. It seems bizarre to even say it.
The touch off his knee made it as he cleared Southampton’s defence, giving him breathing space before sweeping the ball under Davis with a neat finish.
To stop these divers. Oscar was naughty when he went down just moments after coming on as a substitute for Juan Mata. Deservedly booked.
This is a disturbing run of results for Mauricio Pochettino’s team and the early season glow that came with victory at Liverpool way back in September has faded away.
Jay Rodriguez had their best chance and yet the excellent Ashley Cole pinched the ball off his toes as the Southampton striker was about to pull the trigger.
After the break Jose Fonte had a chance to put Southampton in front, but this really was Chelsea’s day down on a windswept and rainy south coast.
‘They became more decisive and controlled the game after that, but I’m not concerned. Rome was not built in a day.’
It is one of his favourite phrases and yet it feels as if they are in free-fall.
After Oscar’s intervention, it is not without good reason.

Southampton: Davis 4; Chambers 5, Fonte 5, Lovren 5, Shaw 6 (Clyne 46; Ramirez 6, Davis 7 (Ward-Prowse 76, 6), Cork 6 (Lambert 60, 6), Schneiderlin 6, Lallana 6; Rodriguez 6.
Subs not used: Gazzaniga, Yoshida, Hooiveld, Gallagher.
Booked: Ramirez, Cork, Lovren, Clyne.

Chelsea : Cech 6; Azpilicueta 6, Cahill 6, Terry 7, A Cole 7; Ramires 7, Mikel 7; Mata 6 (Oscar 53, 8), Hazard 7 (Essien 85,6), Schurrle 6 (Willian 53, 7); Torres 7.
Subs not usd: Schwarzer, Ba, Eto’o, Kalas.
Booked: Oscar.
Goals: Torres 60, Willian 71, Oscar 82.

Referee: Martin Atkinson 8.
Man of the match: Oscar